Making architecture offers a unique insight into the mind and work of an Architect, starting with the basics of the profession and culminating with the production of a scaled site model. The course should act as ideal preparation for those interested in undertaking an undergraduate degree in Architecture, although its flexible, intriguing and enjoyable content makes it accessible for all those looking to increase their knowledge in the field.
Delivered primarily by Professors from the IE School of Architecture and design in Segovia (Spain), the course begins by examining the mind-set of an Architect - asking how they think and what they do to train their creative minds, moving on to using inspiration from the environment to stimulate design ideas. Finally, the course concludes by looking at some of the more technical aspects of Architecture - such as composition, form, space and hierarchy - and stressing the importance of creating a story that helps define your design.
This fascinating content is delivered principally from the stunning design studio at the IE school of Architecture and features external videos from a few beautiful locations in the city of Segovia. Finally, it includes interviews from Pritzker Prize executive director - and Dean of the school of Architecture and design at IE - Martha Thorne, with a number of award winning practising architects such as Sarah Wigglesworth and Cristoph Ingenhoven.

In this module we are going to delve more into the technical side of architecture. We will explore essential principles such as: composition, hierarchy, balance, and space. Having learned how you interact with the environment, this is where you learn how to put your ideas into practice. You will learn what is necessary in order to ensure your structure connects with people living near it and interacting with it on a daily basis. Also, we will explore how architects use the natural and physical environment to stimulate their creative process - taking a look at incredible examples from renowned architects. Finally, you will receive tips on how to succeed in this week's assignment.

Taught By

Nenad Katic

Professor

Manuel Perez Romero

Professor

David Jeffrey Goodman

Director of Undergraduate Studies in Architecture

Transcript

Hi. Sometimes architects don't have the technology available that they probably want. Sometimes they are required to work with a really low technology. So think about this situation. It's something similar to the assignment that you are developing or that you're under process right now. You just have cardboard, scissors, different type of papers, and that's all. From my personal point of view, I think that good architecture can emerge under these situations when the conditions are more constraint, when it's not so open the design. They force you to think about what can you do with a technology that is not what you wanted? There are amazing examples of architecture that good architecture has developed and has been designed in this situation. I'm going to introduce you a really nice story right now about an architect that he fell in love with a Swedish girl. The name of this architect, who was a British architect, called Ralph Erskine. When he fall in love with this Swedish girl, he decided to go to Sweden to live with her. A farmer rent them a small piece of land, where they built a small cabin, an amazing small cabin, just with the materials they had around. It was a cabin with a window facade open to the South and a veranda, where you can see Ralph Erskine and his wife sitting outside, just with the materials that they can found around, that it was built with timber from the trees that were around. From the North facade, the one that he decided to protect from, because there were really cold winds there, he just wrapped it with the logs and with the trunks that he cut it for the chimney. So as you see that facade, it was a facade completely designed by the trunks that he cut it for the chimney. That was an amazing design, and I think that finally, that small cabin has become a positive part of the natural environment where they live. Another example is like the one from Ralph Erskine. We can find it in the work of Uruguayan architect called Eladio Dieste. At the time, the most common material that he had for design was just bricks. Probably, if we think about bricks, the technology regarding bricks, not so huge, but he thought that it could be an opportunity to focus on what we can do with a brick from a technical point of view. So he started to bend the walls. He started to bend the roof. You can see his designs that were so amazing, building with just material, just one material, the bricks, the roof, the walls, the floor. Everything was built with one material. But the most important issue was that he knew that he need to find a new technique of how to build with just some unique material and from a completely different way that traditionally has been developed with the bricks. So he invented a new construction system regarding the use of the brick. So this is a do it yourself exercise. Sometimes this is what architects need to do. Remember, it doesn't matter the material that you have, you can enhance whatever you have available at that moment. Remember, Ralph Erskine and his Swedish girl, and remember the bricks and Eladio Dieste. Next video, I will show you how architects has been working with recycling materials, or let's say in a different way, how can you give materials a second chance?

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